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duty_callsActually, let me rephrase. Has social networking killed the the mother, the teenager, the neighborhood block parties, and family dinners? There is no doubt with the onslaught of social sites like  Facebook, Ning, microblogging twitter, Myspace, WP, Blogger, Stickam and of course promotion sites like Kirsty, Digg, Reddit, and stumble upon, that people have a lot to say, lots of ways to say it, and lots of ways to promote it.

But are we spending more time online then in real time?

Gone are the days of meeting in one central location and onto  everyone owning a community, a blog, a website, and a reason you should show up at their front door, all while keeping up with your own. Suddenly, the Internet is not an hour a day down time, as it once was just  a measly 10 years ago when I graduated college, but a full on, often unpaid, 40-80 hour a week career.

It’s almost like Hollywood…….lots of people taking waitress jobs hoping for that movie screen break. It begs the question, what would we be doing if we were not here?

Running a Blog:

With blogs vastly moving into media mainstream as the death of print media looming before us, blogs are popping up at an alarming rate that keep people ‘connected’ to those like them, but disconnected in many ways to those in real life. Its no doubt incredibly time consuming to hop from one site to the next, interact with online visitors, and all the while keep up excellent content, but even more so when that turns to courting PR reps, reviews, and online opportunities at a steady and competitive rate to sites online similar to yours. I have seen many a people become a slave to comments, linky love, and stat tracker and I’m not far away myself from having an Internet break down. Even our own self worth often gets tied up into the opportunities we may be receiving, or lack of, as a blogger or online marketer.

Are our twitter friends growing, do we have a Facebook presence, how many people are entering our contests and what is the next big site that we are not a part of yet??

Let’s face it, blogs are mini businesses for a population of women that can be largely forgotten once she has a child, especially  if she moved from corporate to mommydom in one fail swoop. It’s easy to get lost, to get tired and not want to leave the house, the strain of putting on a clean pair of jeans and a nice blouse seems more like a chore then something you do for yourself. I received a very thorough tongue lashing from a male, non gay he made sure I knew, hairdresser this weekend on making sure my hair was done whether I was leaving the house or not.

Hopping online is a quick fix of the illusion of chatting with someone. We have found a way to not only incorporate our previous and often unused skills, but be known and the salvation of just being considered a ‘top’ blogger, have more then 10 comments on a post, or be looked up to is something that most online presences try to achieve.You can admit it or not, but it’s true.

And while 10 may do it, millions try it, and they try it hard.

As a mother myself, I have been fortunate enough to connect stories, share experiences, and find true friends online, but I can be honest enough to say at the sacrifice of assembling the local moms meetings, or joining a neighborhood baseball game. And while no, none of it is honestly “my thing” as I am someone that isn’t keen on swapping whose baby pooped green last, I think women are so far from that anymore that the women  I truly  would meet at the park are going to be just as savvy, connected, and interesting as I perceive myself to be. In a way, I think the “I don’t have anything in common with them” excuse is more a cover for the “I have too much to do” curse.

A Look at my Day:

I realize I may be slightly abnormal in that I work from home and socialize from home, so my hours will be skewed, but I put enough time in combined that I learn to recognize the same faces over and over again and know I’m far from alone. It’s important to note that I am self employed, so I have to set my own hours and that can be a heavy burden to bare, especially when the work I do never really has an ending date, a closing of an account, its all ongoing. Nonetheless, here is my day.

745 -12:30 My daughter goes to school and I start my work. This consists of email returns on 2 accounts, both business related but separate companies. Checking up on my community, getting up the first blog posts of the day, and closing any open PR accounts I may have. It also usually hosts atleast 1-2 hours worth of phone meetings.

1:45-3:30 Daughter is napping and off I go again. Checking email that came in, getting up and scheduling content, follow up with consulting, PR, and some socializing will inevitably occur.

About 4:30 I check Recipe Zaar for dinner. Yes, even my meals come from the net.  But I have to say, this site is a one stop shop.

6:30-11:15pm Chris usually takes Charlotte out to go hang out with neighborhood girls, then gives her a bath, and it starts all over again for me. The evening also consists of orders from my online boutique, website building contracts I may have, onslaught of emails again, scheduling postal pick ups, and more.

Total time online between Boutique, Blog, and Business?

Approximately 11.5 hours a day.

Total time face to face with people? Maybe 4.

The truth is that in my life, I have developed into the person whose house isn’t spotless anymore, the person who spends almost 80 hours a week working from home on the next contractual job, and who sometimes has to remind herself that taking out 30 minutes to go for a walk with my family in the evening is more important then the next hairbow holder that has to get out the door or the next blog post that must go up. I’m not good at turning down someone if they need my help or want advice on something. And even worse, my income depends on it.

I have set a standard in my life that I can barely keep up with and its clear that I may die trying.

But don’t worry, there is a plot next to me with your name on it.

~Trisha

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